Cyberpunkery has learned that Netflix is working on a Terminator anime series. Yes, you heard that right. And it’s a sentence we never thought we’d be writing but here we are. Terminator, one of our favorite franchises, despite being only quasi-cyberpunk related, is being given the anime treatment.
According to Variety, Netflix is developing the series together with famed Japanese animation studio Production I.G.. The studio is of course known for some of our favorite things such as Ghost in the Shell and Psycho-Pass.
This will be Terminator’s first foray into the world of anime and it’s second television series after Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles. It will also be the first entry in the Terminator franchise since 2019’s Terminator: Dark Fate, a film considered a commercial failure despite being actually very good.
“’Terminator’ is one of the most iconic sci-fi stories ever created–and has only grown more relevant to our world over time,” said John Derderian, Netflix’s vice president of Japan and anime. “The new animated series will explore this universe in a way that has never been done before. We can’t wait for fans to experience this amazing new chapter in the epic battle between machines and humans.”
Production I.G.’s involvement meanwhile comes as little surprise given their work with thematically related works like Ghost in the Shell. And they seem to be rather big Terminator fans, themselves.
“I asked my long-time friend and colleague Mamoru Oshii what he thought about the idea of turning the ‘Terminator’ into an animated series,” said Mitsuhisa Ishikawa, president and CEO of Production I.G. “His response was ‘Ishikawa, are you out of your mind?’ At that instant, I was confident we should get onboard. As huge fans, our team at Production I.G is putting their heart and souls into creating this series. We hope fans will enjoy it!”
This is the latest announcement related to some of our favorite media franchises being adapted into anime. Back in 2018, we learned that a Blade Runner anime would soon be in development. It’s all very exciting but we know less about this series than we do about that. No details about the plot or setting are yet known. We also don’t have a time frame for its release. We’ll continue to report as more details become available to us.
[Via Variety]
